European delegation to visit India

A delegation of European lawmakers will visit Amritsar, Chandigarh, Delhi and Ludhiana to study farm sector reforms and trade among other areas.

A delegation of European lawmakers will visit Amritsar, Chandigarh, Delhi and Ludhiana to study farm sector reforms and trade among other areas.

The purpose of the visit is to grasp India's diversity and understand how states interact with the Centre, very much as Europe deals with the relationship between EU and its member states, an official statement said.

The nine-member delegation would visit Amritsar, Chandigarh and Ludhiana from April 15-19 before rounding up talks in Delhi on April 20-21.

"Apart from holding dialogues with the executive and legislative branch, it is important to increase the cultural awareness of contemporary India in Europe," Chair of the delegation, Neena Gill said.

During the visit, members of the European Parliament would deliberate on India's plans for reforms in agriculture sector and draw comparisons with EU's reforms of its Common Agricultural Policy.

Gender, manufacturing and trade issues would also be part of the delegation's agenda, besides focussing on democracy at the local levels.

The members are also expected to hold meetings with Chief Ministers of the states they are visiting, MPs, EU-India Parliamentary Forums, NGOs and industrialists.